Saab 9-3 Aero, what to do...
Discussion
Hi all,
I have had my Saab 9-3 aero hot coupe for about 11 years. I am now wondering what I do.
About 18 months ago I had a new turbo fitted to it at a cost of around £800 and everything inside works fine. Had a new steering pump and slave cylinder not so long ago and only on 90k miles.
It's been sat on my drive for 6 month SORN since then as I have a Z4m and a 235i and obviously would rather drive them. The issue is occasionally I need 5 seats.
So I have 2 options, sell the SAAB or get in back on the road. The thing is if I was to keep it I need to be sure its not going to let us down. Since the new turbo it doesn't quite feel the same. Feels a bit down on power and not sure if its just a mapping issue. Also the brakes are pants and I would want some new ones, plus ideally I should probably get the shocks replaced and the wheels ideally could do with a refurb, and I would like to get the original exhaust put back on. After that I am probably looking at spending another 1.5K on it. The car is currently in Hampshire. Does anyone know of someone that would basically sort it all out for me, get it back to its glory days and not take the mickey? The car can go away for as long as needed so not a rush job.
My other option is to buy some sort of boring generic Golf which is a lot better on fuel and effectively give the Saab away to the highest bidder.
Over to the forum.
I have had my Saab 9-3 aero hot coupe for about 11 years. I am now wondering what I do.
About 18 months ago I had a new turbo fitted to it at a cost of around £800 and everything inside works fine. Had a new steering pump and slave cylinder not so long ago and only on 90k miles.
It's been sat on my drive for 6 month SORN since then as I have a Z4m and a 235i and obviously would rather drive them. The issue is occasionally I need 5 seats.
So I have 2 options, sell the SAAB or get in back on the road. The thing is if I was to keep it I need to be sure its not going to let us down. Since the new turbo it doesn't quite feel the same. Feels a bit down on power and not sure if its just a mapping issue. Also the brakes are pants and I would want some new ones, plus ideally I should probably get the shocks replaced and the wheels ideally could do with a refurb, and I would like to get the original exhaust put back on. After that I am probably looking at spending another 1.5K on it. The car is currently in Hampshire. Does anyone know of someone that would basically sort it all out for me, get it back to its glory days and not take the mickey? The car can go away for as long as needed so not a rush job.
My other option is to buy some sort of boring generic Golf which is a lot better on fuel and effectively give the Saab away to the highest bidder.
Over to the forum.
Edited by BlueEyedBoy on Saturday 1st July 19:23
I had almost exactly the same dilemma last year.
2002 93 Aero Coupe, great condition, owned for 8 years, all the important upgrades, really reliable.
Fairly quick, good-looking in a quirky way, quite rare but not yet 'classic'.
But started to cost quite a bit in repairs, in the end traded it in, for almost nowt, for a 95 Aero Wagon (plus two other cars, like you).
I still wonder if I should have kept it...?
2002 93 Aero Coupe, great condition, owned for 8 years, all the important upgrades, really reliable.
Fairly quick, good-looking in a quirky way, quite rare but not yet 'classic'.
But started to cost quite a bit in repairs, in the end traded it in, for almost nowt, for a 95 Aero Wagon (plus two other cars, like you).
I still wonder if I should have kept it...?
if it were me, i'd keep (because i keep all my old saabs !) but if you decide to sell please give me a nudge for a discussion, i'm a sucker for coupes ... i'm not too far away in the grand scheme of things either.
stock brakes are cheap and quick, upgrading to 308mm fronts not a big or expensive job. upgrading the rears is a bit more involved but, again, it's a "parts-bin" job
wheel refurb i have no idea, i just put up with scruffy if i have to !
.
i got some B6's from PFS for around £300 recently so uprating the shocks not too onerous financially. B6's are for standard ride height, you may be looking to lower; i believe B8's and Eibach springs are a favoured combination.
plumb a proper boost gauge in and make sure you're still getting base boost - wastegate on the new turbo might need adjusting. make sure that all your vac lines are OK but in the absence of a CEL and a "limited performance" fault code i'd assume they are and start with establishing exactly what boost you're getting.
when you refer to re-fitting the stock exhaust do you mean it has an aftermarket system on it ? if so, i could also be interested in that if you go ahead with the refresh and this becomes surplus
whereabouts in hampshire ? - there's a number of specialists within striking distance, especially given that the car doesn't need recovering.
paul
stock brakes are cheap and quick, upgrading to 308mm fronts not a big or expensive job. upgrading the rears is a bit more involved but, again, it's a "parts-bin" job
wheel refurb i have no idea, i just put up with scruffy if i have to !
.
i got some B6's from PFS for around £300 recently so uprating the shocks not too onerous financially. B6's are for standard ride height, you may be looking to lower; i believe B8's and Eibach springs are a favoured combination.
plumb a proper boost gauge in and make sure you're still getting base boost - wastegate on the new turbo might need adjusting. make sure that all your vac lines are OK but in the absence of a CEL and a "limited performance" fault code i'd assume they are and start with establishing exactly what boost you're getting.
when you refer to re-fitting the stock exhaust do you mean it has an aftermarket system on it ? if so, i could also be interested in that if you go ahead with the refresh and this becomes surplus
whereabouts in hampshire ? - there's a number of specialists within striking distance, especially given that the car doesn't need recovering.
paul
Edited by paulmakin on Thursday 6th July 22:16
Well and update on the car.
I took it for an MOT this weekend, and it passed! I also realised I had driven 3000 miles in 5 years in it...Couple of advisories but nothing major. So also got it serviced and its ready to be back on the road.
With regards to the turbo, its making almost full boost in 2nd but in third its just not quite right. The turbo is also making a whistling noise it didn't used to make, could this be the waste-gate?
The car is on Koni Adjustable and eibach springs I got installed at Abbott Motorsport.
I took it for an MOT this weekend, and it passed! I also realised I had driven 3000 miles in 5 years in it...Couple of advisories but nothing major. So also got it serviced and its ready to be back on the road.
With regards to the turbo, its making almost full boost in 2nd but in third its just not quite right. The turbo is also making a whistling noise it didn't used to make, could this be the waste-gate?
The car is on Koni Adjustable and eibach springs I got installed at Abbott Motorsport.
Edited by BlueEyedBoy on Sunday 9th July 21:53
good news - i guess it's a keeper now !!
certainly begins to sound like a boost leak.
as above, all the vac hoses need checking - last time one of mine did this it did trigger a CEL though; it was just the small pipe from the recirc valve to the map sensor that had popped off. best to replace them all with silicone, they deteriorate with age and get all hard and crumbly.
also check the intercooler hoses - refitting these can be tricky sometimes due to limited access, intake side will be fine, cobra end is the worst
paul
certainly begins to sound like a boost leak.
as above, all the vac hoses need checking - last time one of mine did this it did trigger a CEL though; it was just the small pipe from the recirc valve to the map sensor that had popped off. best to replace them all with silicone, they deteriorate with age and get all hard and crumbly.
also check the intercooler hoses - refitting these can be tricky sometimes due to limited access, intake side will be fine, cobra end is the worst
paul
The turbo is new, so I hope that is not the issue.
I refitted all the thin pipes a couple of months ago with new silicon hoses, so I hope not them.
I might take it in to the garage to get the larger hoses checked, because when I had the new turbo fitted the main intercooler pipe blew off under boost and the garage had to fix it at the side of road...maybe it was not put on properly. It looked like it had also been cut at some point rather than a new one fitted as one end looked like it had perished.
But yes, keeping for another year now so probably sink more money into it....
I refitted all the thin pipes a couple of months ago with new silicon hoses, so I hope not them.
I might take it in to the garage to get the larger hoses checked, because when I had the new turbo fitted the main intercooler pipe blew off under boost and the garage had to fix it at the side of road...maybe it was not put on properly. It looked like it had also been cut at some point rather than a new one fitted as one end looked like it had perished.
But yes, keeping for another year now so probably sink more money into it....
You think a regular garage could sort it? Do you know the part I should buy and get them to fit? As I said I know the place that fitted the turbo said the old one had been cut, ideally I wish they had just fitted a new one rather than try and save me some cash. They did say they were a few bob though...
for sure they could; it's been a while since i had the boost hoses off but i think you can get at them from above (will check in daylight and report back). if you can't, once it's up in the air with the undertrays off it becomes much easier.
it can be very difficult to get the hoses seated properly at the best of times so at the side of the road may have been a struggle.
you should be able to check the security of the pipes without too much bother though - iirc you can at least get "hands on" from above so just give them a gentle tightness check and take it from there.
the clamp on the bottom of the cobra pipe can also be a mare to secure as you almost always end up with the nut on the bottom and accessible only from underneath
regards
paul
it can be very difficult to get the hoses seated properly at the best of times so at the side of the road may have been a struggle.
you should be able to check the security of the pipes without too much bother though - iirc you can at least get "hands on" from above so just give them a gentle tightness check and take it from there.
the clamp on the bottom of the cobra pipe can also be a mare to secure as you almost always end up with the nut on the bottom and accessible only from underneath
regards
paul
fond these part numbers:
Turbo to Intercooler - OEM 4876132, 4879086
Intercooler to Pipe - OEM 5195714, 5195805
taken from this ad for silicone boost hoses for your car - only clear picture/example i could find, other suppliers are available as they say !!
http://www.partsforsaabs.com/product_info.php?cPat...
don't sound too much ££ but verify that there is a leak before ordering
you could also try the "bolt mod" before spending - a number of my T7s have had their performance mysteriously restored by this (which, whilst not being a repair, is a tried and tested workaround). this effectively bypasses any problems with the APC valving which are harming boost levels
paul
Turbo to Intercooler - OEM 4876132, 4879086
Intercooler to Pipe - OEM 5195714, 5195805
taken from this ad for silicone boost hoses for your car - only clear picture/example i could find, other suppliers are available as they say !!
http://www.partsforsaabs.com/product_info.php?cPat...
don't sound too much ££ but verify that there is a leak before ordering
you could also try the "bolt mod" before spending - a number of my T7s have had their performance mysteriously restored by this (which, whilst not being a repair, is a tried and tested workaround). this effectively bypasses any problems with the APC valving which are harming boost levels
paul
Bit late with this but if you have problems with the i/c pipes blowing off there's two things that may help
Use Mikalor Clamps and before installation of the pipes spray the cheapest hairspray that you can find into the ends immediately before installation then leave them for 30 minutes, they won't come off again.
Use Mikalor Clamps and before installation of the pipes spray the cheapest hairspray that you can find into the ends immediately before installation then leave them for 30 minutes, they won't come off again.
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